Noah Dobson Living Up To His Contract So Far

Heading into the season, there were questions about his all-around defensive game, as many clips were going around by Islanders fans showing his defensive deficiencies, which may have enhanced those concerns. However, despite not being a very physical defenseman, he uses his smooth skating and elite defensive stick to defend. He has proven that the narrative that he isn’t a good defenseman in his own zone has been blown out of proportion, and that he is extremely solid most of the time. The Habs can rely on him in any situation that he is needed.

This is important as he is now seen as the Canadiens’ #1 defenseman with the money he makes and the minutes he has been given. On almost any other team, Dobson would also be getting top power play, but with someone as shifty and elusive as Lane Hutson, who looks like a younger version of Quinn Hughes, that’s the guy who will get the top power play minutes. During Saturday’s game, it was actually Dobson who started the play that led to Nick Suzuki’s power play goal. It was Dobson’s first power-play point of the season.

In term of 5 on 5 offense, Dobson is actually the one who has created more than Hutson, but that may be as a result of getting more minutes, but it seems that his game in general seems more suited for even-strength hockey. The reality is his overall vision and passing abilities are a notch or two below Hutson’s, and it makes a difference when setting up a play on the man advantage. 

Either way, Dobson has proved anyone who doubted him following a rough year with the Islanders last season wrong. One thing that was proven right from last season is that Dobson actually produces most of his offense at even strength. Although with the Canadiens, it may be because they don’t put enough traffic in front of the net and try to look for the perfect pass most of the time, which doesn’t really feel suited to what makes Dobson an elite offensive defenseman.

Honestly, the biggest surprise with Dobson is that he looks more like a solid 2-way defenseman than the offensive guy that was advertised throughout the summer. He is also more of a 50-55 point defenseman like he was before the 2023-24 season. His last two seasons seem like outliers in what we should expect from him. Dobson will be a solid defenseman who plays 22-24 minutes every game while putting up around 50-55 points a year. 

Hopefully, he can continue to stay on the path of being a solid 2-way defenseman that leads with his play on the ice for the long-term future. As long as he plays similarly to how he has so far with the Habs, his time in Montreal should be great.

How have you liked Dobson’s play so far as a Hab?